


the lion's den

by AriaManiac



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Bandaging, Confessions, Design based off of a friend's rp interp, F/M, Original Persona, Persona 5 Spoilers, Really obvious crushes, Rejection, slight noncanon design, time is different in the metaverse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-13
Updated: 2020-11-13
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:14:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,717
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27541402
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AriaManiac/pseuds/AriaManiac
Summary: Perhaps taking a beat down from various shadows to protect your leader isn't a good idea, but what can you say when you're in love?
Relationships: Amamiya Ren (Persona Series)/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 4





	the lion's den

Silence. 

It was so silent that Destiny could hear her own blood rushing through her ears as Ren silently cleaned and wrapped her arm. Her entire body ached with each slight touch of the noirette’s precise fingers, the pain medicine that Ren had given her earlier already beginning to wear off; A part of her wanted to ask for some more pain meds, but she knew that Ren would deny her request, for he didn’t want to worsen her state anymore from taking too many meds within the six hour time limit. 

“So…” Destiny finally says, her voice cracking from its lack of use over the past three hours. She swallows hard and continues, her brown eyes shifting over to the silent male. “Pretty bad day in the metaverse today, huh?” 

He stares at her for a few moments before settling down into his chair, an exasperated sigh leaving the noriette’s lips. Ren’s fingers were fidgeting with his gloves, pulling and tugging on the red fabric as he stared straight ahead, his eyes glazed with a far away look. Destiny leans over to slap him on the arm, a frown on her lips as she pulls Ren’s attention back onto her. From the redhead’s position on the table, she was only slightly taller than him, a vastly different comparison from their usual heights when they were standing. Though she didn’t want to admit it, Destiny liked that she was taller than him currently, for if he was going to listen to her while they talked, Ren would be forced to look up at rather than the opposite. She begins to kick her feet as she hums, a soft smile on her battered face.

“You can’t fool me that easily, Gata, I’ve been doing this longer than you have.” 

Her heart leaps in her throat at the noirette’s words, a dark brown flush creeping onto her face as she looks away; Her feet had stilled in their playful kicks while her hands tightened their grip on the edge of the table. Destiny was so certain that she had succeeded in her attempt to keep Ren safe and to successfully get away with him not knowing that she put herself in such a position. 

“Uh...and what the hell do you mean, Joker? How exactly did I trick you?” She questions with a tilt of her head, still feigning innocence. 

The noirette doesn’t say anything, his lips pulled into a thin line as he simply stared at her, allowing the previous silence to return. His look was one of disdain, as if he tired of her attempt to lie to his face. Destiny meets his gaze without hesitation, silently agreeing to Ren’s staring contest, unblinking for several moments before she sends a wink his way. He merely blinks at her actions, the smallest hint of confusion tugging on his features. 

“Why do you feel the need to continue lying, Gata? I knew exactly who the shadow was aiming for and I was ready to take the brunt of its attack.” 

“What? Is there a problem with helping out the leader of this group? Last time I checked, Joker, you were the one carrying us whenever we encountered some strong shadows.” 

“As the leader of this group, I know exactly what I can and can not handle, you, on the other hand, don’t understand your limits.” He pauses before gesturing to the various wounds that were inflicted on Destiny’s body. “That much is clear.” 

Destiny’s nose wrinkles with a huff, irritation rising within her from Ren’s stern criticism of her actions. Of course, she didn’t want to be put into harm’s way to the point that she wouldn’t be able to walk from the pain of her injuries, but the thought of Ren getting hurt was too much to bear. Being a transfer student was hard, even more so when you stumbled through japanese like an obvious foreigner; So of course, when japanese and Destiny’s math homework were combined, she needed someone to help her figure out what exactly was going on. Unlike the others, she didn’t know anything about Ren’s path, nor did she care when she found out- Things were different in the United States, especially when it came to juvenile crimes. After all the times she’s spent with the crimson eyed noirette, Destiny had finally realized that she had fallen for him. 

“You- You just don’t understand shit, Joker. That’s all.” 

“You’re right, I don’t understand ‘shit’, I’m still confused as to why you seem so determined to put your life at risk for me.” Ren huffs as he rises from his seat, instantly towering over the dark skinned thief. 

“Well, maybe if you weren’t as dense as you are smart, then maybe you’d realize that I fucking like you!”

Ren opened his mouth to respond, but she had already slid off of the table and headed out the safe room, Destiny’s steps wobbling like a newborn fawn. He wasn’t exactly sure what Destiny meant- Of course, there were moments where Ren didn’t understand her reference to some obscure American fact, or when she makes a dirty joke that has more than one innuendo, and when she would come to him for advice about how to court in Japanese culture. There were just so many things that Ren didn’t get...and this appeared to be one of them. 

“Wait- Did she…?” He pauses before quickly running out of the safe room, wanting to catch up to the redhead before it was too late. 

He turns the corner to see Destiny sitting on the floor, her knees pulled to her chest as she mutters something in between her barely restrained sobs. Ren knew that such a position would strain her injuries even further, potentially even reopening the few wounds he had stitched shut only two hours ago. He stops in front of her, kneeling down to match Destiny’s lowered gaze.

“You’re going to tear open your stitches.” 

“Why the hell do you care, Joker?” She hisses, never once raising her head. 

“Because I don’t want you worsening your condition, Gata.” 

His hand slides underneath her knees while his left supports her back, gently pulling her against his chest and standing to his feet, the redhead thief firmly grasped similarly to a bride within their lover’s arms.

“Put me down, you fuckwad.” 

“You can hardly walk, there’s no point in forcing you to crawl towards the exit.” He hums out in response as he walks towards the exit- Each step nearly jostles Destiny out of his grasp, forcing the redhead to loop her arm around his neck and stabilize herself within Ren’s grasp. Although she knew that Ren was simply doing this to make sure that she wouldn’t further strain herself, her heart fluttered regardless, images of Ren carrying her across a threshold, kissing her lips, and of them slowly dancing in their kitchen flashing in her mind. 

The moment they cross over from the metaverse, their outfits instantly vanish, leaving them in their school uniforms. The wounds that Destiny had obtained within the metaverse were nearly healed, the only major injuries that Ren could see being the pale scar that dragged from her cheek to the bottom of her chin. He knew that it would more than likely fade sooner or later, especially if Takemi had some sort of new medicinal concoction she was crafting. 

“You can let me down now.” 

“Oh- Sorry…” He instantly apologizes, letting the redhead stand on her own two feet. His cheeks burned from the embarrassment, turning a soft pink; He was too preoccupied with own thoughts to realize that he had been holding her much longer than he needed to. The pair stand there for a few moments, the silence from earlier returning once again as Destiny shifts from foot to foot, unsure of what to do. She knew that Ren had processed exactly what she had said earlier to him, for he wasn’t as dense as Ryuji was when it came to confessions and declarations of love. Now all she needed was for Ren to reject her, so she could continue on with her life, knowing that she could never live up to the noirette’s interests, especially compared to people such as Ann or Makoto. 

“I’m gonna head ou-”

“Wait, King-san, we haven’t finished discussing your reckless actions in the me-”

She fixes her dark brown gaze onto him, her eyebrows furrowed as she thought, wondering how she could stop herself from further damaging the relationship that she had with her friend. 

“Listen, Ren, if you want me to stop getting hurt for you, then I’ll make a deal with you, alright?” 

An eyebrow arches in question, but he allows her to continue, wondering exactly where Destiny was going with this. 

“Alright, if you forgot what I told you back there, then I swear that I won’t put myself in danger ever again.” 

“You don’t have to do that, King-san-” 

Her gaze turns to one full of malice, one that Ren had only seen whenever Destiny was facing off against a shadow or threatening one of their classmates that was talking bad about either him or Ryuji- To see such a fearsome look pointed in his direction made his blood run cold and his hands a sweaty mess. 

“Please, Amamiya-san, just accept the deal, alright? I promise I’ll live up to it.” 

Ren pauses and then nods, a sigh of relief leaving Destiny’s lips for the confirmation. She didn’t need the other thieves to find out about her true feelings towards their leader and she certainly didn’t need them to know that he had technically rejected her- A lack of answer from her rather harsh confession was indeed a no. 

“I….have to get back to my house, my mom needs me to start dinner tonight, alright?” She brushes past the noirette, leaving him alone in the alleyway as he thought. Destiny’s mom wasn’t living in Japan and she was currently living alone; Ren knew that she had lied to avoid any sort of conversation that he might bring up. 

Ren’s fingers tensed, balling into fists as he realized his mistake. He didn’t tell Destiny how he felt, nor could he process that she actually felt that way towards him.

“Dammit…”


End file.
